PRESS RELEASE: Los Angeles Party House Ordinance Goes Into Effect

Posted by Mark Pampanin8sc on April 16, 2018

Los Angeles, CA -- The ordinance on loud or unruly gatherings, also known as the ‘Party House Ordinance,’ officially took effect April 15th, after being unanimously approved in City Council and signed by Mayor Eric Garcetti in February of this year. The ordinance, which began as a motion authored by Councilmember David Ryu, aims to curb repeat offenders of out-of-control parties in residential neighborhoods with escalating fines and new enforcement tools for the Los Angeles Police Department.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

April 16, 2018

Press Contact:

Estevan Montemayor

estevan.montemayor@lacity.org

213.605.4145

Los Angeles Party House Ordinance Goes Into Effect

Los Angeles -- The ordinance on loud or unruly gatherings, also known as the ‘Party House Ordinance,’ officially took effect April 15th, after being unanimously approved in City Council and signed by Mayor Eric Garcetti in February of this year. The ordinance, which began as a motion authored by Councilmember David Ryu, aims to curb repeat offenders of out-of-control parties in residential neighborhoods with escalating fines and new enforcement tools for the Los Angeles Police Department.

“For years, massive, all-night parties have been able to flood quiet neighborhoods with hundreds of guests and put neighborhoods at risk without any consequence,” Councilmember Ryu said. “Finally, we have real tools on the books to stop these out-of-control events, and hold homeowners responsible for renting out their homes to rogue party operators.”

The ordinance includes increasing fines up to $8,000 and requires those who violate the ordinance to post a public notice for 30 days notifying neighbors of their unlawful conduct. It penalizes both party hosts and homeowners, which is meant to dissuade property owners from renting out their homes to professional party-throwers and reduce the likelihood of future violations, which reduces the burden on law enforcement to repeatedly break up parties.

The ordinance was championed by the Hollywood Hills Neighborhood Council, who had spent years working for such an ordinance. Upon the ordinance's approval in February 2018, Hollywood Hills Neighborhood Council president Anastasia Mann made the following statement:

“It’s with enormous thanks and great relief that we celebrate the passage of the Party House Ordinance, a project long in the making. This will come as a great relief to residents who have had to endure significant damage to their quality of life issues due to unruly, out of control - mostly commercial - parties in neighborhood across Los Angeles but particularly in the Hollywood & other Hillside communities.”

The ordinance was also supported by the Hollywood United Neighborhood Council, Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council, Northridge East Neighborhood Council, Valley Village Neighborhood Council and other community organizations,

“With this new ordinance, the party is over for these completely out of hand neighborhood headaches," said Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer when the ordinance passed City Council on February 21. "With escalating fines into the thousands of dollars, this ordinance has the teeth to help us continue our house party prosecutions with greater effectiveness. I applaud Councilmember Ryu’s leadership on this.”

“The parties we’ve been seeing in our hillsides are often professional events - flyer parties with a posted cover charge,” Councilmember Ryu said. “They not only disturb the quality of life, but also block narrow hillside streets with throngs of people and put our sensitive hillsides at risk of fire with stray cigarettes. There is no way we could have allowed this to continue unabated.”

The new law allows for escalating fines on party hosts and homeowners to ensure that hosts who throw unruly parties in multiple homes are increasingly cited for multiple offenses, and that property owners remain culpable for renting out their homes to party house operators. The fines are:

$100 for the first violation;

$500 for the second violation;

$1,000 for the third violation;

$2,000 for the fourth violation;

$4,000 for the fifth violation;

And $8,000 for the sixth and subsequent violation

The ordinance is now in the Los Angeles Municipal Code under Chapter IV, Article 1, Section 41.58.1. Read the final ordinance here.